Jncc coastal Directories Project Region 11 The Western Approaches

C.  Contact names and addresses
Type of information
Contact address and telephone no.
Occurrence of invertebrates
*Biological Records Centre,
in the region
Institute of Terrestrial Ecology,
Monks Wood, tel: [phone]
Invertebrate site and species *Dr R.S. Key, Dr C.M. Drake and
information - England
Dr D.A. Sheppard, Invertebrate
Zoologists, Lowlands Team,
English Nature HQ, Peterborough,
tel: [phone]
Invertebrate site and species *A.P. Fowles, Countryside Council
information - south Wales
for Wales HQ, Bangor,
tel: [phone]
Invertebrate Site Register
*Invertebrate Site Register, JNCC,
(ISR) (computerised national Peterborough, tel: [phone]
inventory of sites of
significance to invertebrate
conservation; contains records
of local, scarce and threatened
species of all groups of
invertebrates)
Conservation of butterflies
G. Pilkington, Butterfly
and moths - Cornwall
Conservation, Chapel Cottage,
Gooseham Mill, Morwenstow,
Cornwall  EX23 9PQ
Conservation of butterflies
D. Bastow, British Butterfly
and moths - Devon
Conservation Society, 19 Ashmill
Court, Bradley Valley, Newton
Abbot, Devon  TQ12 1SQ
Conservation of butterflies
Dr H. Cole, Butterfly
and moths - Avon
Conservation, 2 Manor Cottages,
Stoke Street, Rodney Stoke,
Cheddar, Somerset  BS27 3UN
Conservation of butterflies
S. Glover, Butterfly Conservation
and moths - Gloucestershire
Society, Brook Cottage,
Two Bridges, Blakeney,
Gloucestershire  GL15 4AF
Conservation of butterflies
R. Smith, Butterfly Conservation
and moths - Glamorgan
Society, 28 Llanmaes Road,
Llantwit Major, South Glamorgan
CF6 9XF
Invertebrates in Cornwall 
Cornwall Biological Records Unit,
Trevithick Centre, Trevenson Road,
Pool, Redruth, Cornwall
TR15 3PL, tel: [phone]
Type of information
Contact address and telephone no.
Invertebrates in Devon
D. Bolton, Exeter Biological
Records Centre, Royal Albert
Memorial Museum, Queen Street,
Exeter  EX4 3RX, tel: [phone]
Invertebrates in Exmoor
D. Boyce, Entomologist/Ecologist,
National Park
Exmoor National Park, Exmoor
House, Dulverton, Somerset
TA22 9HL, tel: [phone]
Invertebrates in Somerset
Somerset Environmental Records
Centre, Hestercombe House,
Cheddon Fitzpaine, Taunton,
Somerset  TA2 8LQ,
tel: [phone]
Invertebrates in Avon
Avon Environmental Records
Centre, Bristol Museums & Art
Gallery, Queen’s Road, Bristol
BS8 1RL, tel: [phone]
Invertebrates in Gwent
Gwent Biological Records Centre,
Newport Museum & Art Gallery,
John Frost Square, Newport,
Gwent  NP9 1HZ, tel: [phone]
Dragonflies in Glamorgan
S.J. Moon, Recorder, Glamorgan
Group of British Dragonfly Survey,
c/o Kenfig NNR, Ton Kenfig, Pyle,
Mid Glamorgan  CF33 4PT,
tel: [phone]
Moths in Glamorgan
S. Moon (Mid Glamorgan) or
J. Gilmore (South Glamorgan),
Glamorgan Moth Recording
Group, c/o Kenfig NNR, Ton
Kenfig, Pyle, Mid Glamorgan
CF33 4PT, tel: [phone]
Recording schemes for key
Gloucestershire Invertebrate
invertebrate sites in
Group, Gloucestershire Wildlife
Gloucestershire
Trust, The Dulverton Building,
Robins Wood Hill Country Park,
Reservoir Road, Gloucester
GL4 6SX, tel: [phone]
5.3  Land and freshwater invertebrates
97
*Starred contact addresses are given in full in the Appendix.

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5.4.1  Introduction
This section considers rare and scarce marine benthic (sea-
bed) species, excluding fish.  The occurrence and distribution
of benthic communities is discussed in 
section 4.2
.
‘Nationally rare’ marine benthic species in this section are
those native organisms that occur in eight or fewer of the
10 km squares (of the Ordnance Survey national grid)
containing sea within the three-mile territorial limit for Great
Britain.  ‘Nationally scarce’ are those that occur in nine to
55 such squares.  This methodology and these criteria are
analogous to those used for other groups of organisms in
British Red Data Books (e.g. Bratton 1991) and by the
International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural
Resources (IUCN) (see IUCN Species Survival Commission
1995).  The development of the current criteria and the choice
of study area for rarity assessment in the marine benthos of
Great Britain are discussed in detail by Sanderson (1996).
Species considered in this chapter are those that are
conspicuous and readily identifiable in the field by the
Marine Nature Conservation Review (MNCR) and similar
techniques or for which taxonomic or biogeographic experts
consider that sufficient data exist on a national basis to
warrant their inclusion.  Species at the limit of their global
distribution (e.g. ‘southern’ or ‘northern’ species) may be
rare only within Great Britain’s territorial seas.  Indeed, the
majority of the species listed from this region are southern
species near or at the northern margins of their range in
Region 11.  A species described here as ‘nationally rare’ or
‘nationally scarce’ is therefore not necessarily endangered,
and although without doubt of national interest (and
perhaps important to national biodiversity), the conservation
importance of species listed here needs to be carefully
considered.  The analysis in this section represents the first
attempt to quantify the rarity of marine benthic species and
to summarise the known occurrence of rare and scarce
species in Great Britain.  As either more data become
available or populations change, the status of species listed
in this chapter will require re-evaluation.
Other regions in south-west Britain (9, 10 and 12) appear
to be comparatively rich in nationally rare and scarce
species.  Region 11 is, however, the richest: there are 39 rare
and 31 scarce marine benthic species recorded from this
region.  
Maps 5.4.1
and 
5.4.2 
summarise their current known
occurrence in recent times.  Areas around the Fal Estuary,
Helford River, the Lizard, Isles of Scilly and Lundy
apparently contain more rare and scarce marine benthic
species than other areas.  These appearances may be
somewhat misleading, however, since survey effort in this
region is not uniform.  Some of the rare and scarce species
found in Region 11 are currently protected under the
Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 or listed under the EC
Habitats and Species Directive.
5.4.2  Important locations and species
Table 5.4.1
lists the rare and scarce marine benthic species
that have been recorded in Region 11, together with their
Region 11  Chapter 5  Important species
98
5.4  Rare sea-bed species
Dr W.G. Sanderson
5°W
13–15 species
10–12 species
7–9 species
4–6 species
1–3 species
No records
Region 10
Region 12
Map 5.4.1  
Numbers of rare marine benthic species recorded in
10 km squares containing sea within the 3 mile limit.
Apparent distribution may be influenced by differences
in recording effort.
5°W
19–21 species
13–18 species
10–12 species
7–9 species
4–6 species
1–3 species
No records
Region 10
Region 12
Map 5.4.2  
Numbers of scarce marine benthic species recorded in
10 km squares containing sea within the 3 mile limit.
Apparent distribution may be influenced by differences
in recording effort.
known areas of occurrence and other key information.
Species names are after Howson (1987).
Some nationally rare and scarce species described here
are restricted to very specific habitat types in Great Britain
that are themselves rare, scarce or in some cases threatened.
Such species may therefore be of nature conservation
importance.  Species confined to saline lagoons, maerl or
seagrass beds have been so considered (see e.g. Anon. 1995).
Within this region of Great Britain many species may
also be ‘nationally rare’ or ‘scarce’ because they are
Mediterranean-Atlantic species at the margins of their
distribution in Great Britain.  It has been argued that
populations of many sessile (non-mobile) southern species
have a poor capacity for recovery and recruit (² reproduce)
slowly at the margins of their distribution and are therefore
particularly vulnerable to even the most minor, infrequent
impacts.  Communities of southern species have therefore
been considered important as reference sites for monitoring

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